Jumping the Gun on Global Warming

"Every time I look around, it's in my face" are the lyrics to this catchy song from a few years ago that I keep singing in my head.

Might have nothing to do with global warming, per se, but it does seem apropos to me with how much attention global warming is getting these days.

My daughter was assigned to bring in two current event articles, her topic of choice: global warming. In my French class today, guess what we talked about? Global warming. What happened in the senate today? A Global warming bill advanced. It's everywhere!

Just about everyone has an opinion about this issue. My belief is that there may be signs that our planet has gotten warmer, marginally at best, but no one can prove it is man-made. Tsk, tsk me if you must, but that's my opinion.

And that's just it. All this global warming "science" is based on opinion or presumption, not fact.

Science cannot be based on a consensus it must be based on fact. I think we are jumping the gun on what we need to do about global warming.

I agree with The Anchoress' logic:

I think what’s happening is natural - it’s happened before - and only our generation is conceited enough to think that it’s all due to “us” or that “we” can do much about it. That’s not to say that conservation measures are not useful - they are, and I practice many of them in my life. But common sense says before we go off half cocked, creating laws and affecting governments and personal liberties, it behooves us to take a longer, closer, much more open-minded look at this thing and not simply submit to alarmism.

Let's also consider these words written in the WSJ by John R. Christy, one of the recipients of the Nobel prize. He is not convinced that the current global warming science proves much, yet:

Mother Nature simply operates at a level of complexity that is, at this point, beyond the mastery of mere mortals (such as scientists) and the tools available to us. As my high-school physics teacher admonished us in thosewe-shall-conquer-the-world-with-a-slide-rule days, "Begin all of your scientific pronouncements with 'At our present level of ignorance, we think we know . . .'"

I haven't seen that type of climate humility lately. Rather I see jump-to-conclusions advocates and, unfortunately, some scientists who see in every weather anomaly the specter of a global-warming apocalypse. Explaining each successive phenomenon as a result of human action gives them comfort and an easy answer.

I'm sure he won't popular with his scientist buddies, but his prudent and humble approach to global warming is really a breath of fresh air.

Whatever is decided to be done about global warming, it needs to be done judiciously and carefully. Going around like a bunch of Chicken Little's just won't help.